DUI & Ciminal Defense Lawyers in Florida

How Long Will a Juvenile Crime Stay on Your Record?

People can often make poor decisions when they’re young. Minors and
young adults are often impulsive, rash, and prone to making decisions
without thinking. They are also more susceptible to peer pressure, which
could cause them to commit crimes such as theft and underage drinking.
However, unlike being arrested as an adult, the Juvenile Justice System
focuses more on rehabilitation than punishment. The justice system knows
that kids make mistakes, and it believes that younger people have a better
opportunity to change their ways, that they’re more adaptable. It
is because of this tendency for the law to think better of minors, that
it allows the expungement of
juvenile crimes.

In Florida, a juvenile record can be
expunged, or sealed, depending on the circumstances. However, you can only petition
for sealing or expunging only once, unless a judge decides that another
arrest is directly related to the arrest that was initially sealed or
expunged. In particular cases, the record will be expunged automatically
without your petition.

All juvenile criminal records can be expunged unless you were found guilty
or adjudicated delinquent for any of the acts related to your sealed record,
you were convicted of a serious offense (such as assault, battery, firearm
use, unlawful use of destructive devices or bombs, child neglect, arson
injuring a firefighter, indecent exposure, petty theft, and animal cruelty).
Likewise, you can’t expunge your juvenile criminal history if your
record involves a violation of pretrial detention and release, sexual
misconduct, child enticement or luring, procuring a minor for prostitution,
lewd offenses in the presence of a minor under 16, voyeurism, fraud, lewd
offenses in the presence of an elderly or disabled person, trafficking,
or any other violation that requires sex offender registration.

Even if your record is expunged, however, it will still be available to
others in very limited circumstances. Generally, you’re allowed
to keep your record to yourself. If you are applying to a criminal justice
agency, admission to the Florida Bar, are seeking employment for certain
other agencies or organizations, or are the subject of criminal prosecution,
your record will be examined. Florida Statutes § 943.0585 and 943.059
list all the exceptions to expungement.

In order to petition to seal or expunge your record, you must apply for
a certificate of eligibility for sealing. After you receive the certificate,
you can file your petition in the county court that handled your juvenile case.

To find out whether your record qualifies for expungement, talk to one
of our experienced
Florida criminal defense attorneys. We have more than 100 years of combined criminal law experience to put
to work on your case and will aggressively defend you in court.
Contact us at (888) 497-0216 or fill out our online form to schedule your free
case consultation today. We look forward to hearing about your situation.

Quick Links

The information on this website is for general information purposes only.
Nothing on this site should be taken as legal advice for any individual
case or situation. This information is not intended to create, and receipt
or viewing does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship.

x

⚠

Your browser is out of date. To get the full experience of this website,
please update to most recent version.